PHOTOJOURNALIST

It’s finally time for me to write about something I have been working on for the past two months. To those who are close to me, thank you for listening to me cry and worry about this story and how others would interpret it. I hope this blog post gives you a little insight to where my brain was at during the process of investigating this topic and how I had to do a little soul searching of my own.

Let’s talk about faith.

I was raised in the United Methodist Church since I was little. I always felt like it was the right fit for me based on how open and accepting the church was and I loved all of the staff and people I made close relationships with. My experience in my youth group really lead to me coming to terms with what I believed and how I saw the world.

Fast forwarding to Christmas break, I was back at my home church for the usual Sunday service with my parents. One of the pastors brought up an event called the General Conference 2019, where the topics of LGBTQ people and ministry would be voted on. I was very taken aback to hear those words spoken aloud in a worship space. In my experience, the topic of human sexuality is never explicitly discussed through sermons, the reason being that so many people believe different things.

After I got back to school and the conference began, I was frequently checking the hashtags and browsing the chatter about what was happening. I even hopped on the live stream to listen to people debate about where the denomination should go as far as including LGBTQ persons.

When the decision came out that the Traditional Plan was passed, I couldn’t shake a feeling that came over me. It was like a thousand pound weight sitting on my chest and it wouldn’t let me sleep. Shortly after 3:00 a.m., I was determined to write a story about it.

Something about telling stories through words and photos is so cathartic to me. Some people find it difficult to sit down and read through an entire news article or a full documentary, but I can’t tear myself away. I feel so attached to the subjects for just a few moments: I cry with them. Granted I cry at the Extra Gum commercials (you know the ones I’m talking about. If you don’t look them up), but there is something so raw about realizing the humanity of other people that just makes my tear ducts get a little over-excited. I feel like I know them for just a second, and that’s what I want other people to feel when they read or look at work of mine.

I probably sent over thirty emails and facebook messages to people in the Columbia, Missouri area to try and talk to them about the decision and what it meant to them. To everyone that reached back out to me, thank you for pushing through the undoubtable pain and confusion you were feeling at the time. Craig, Jen, Kimberly, Madi and Jacob, the entire congregation of Hallsville UMC, MUMC, and Community United Methodist, thank you for letting me into your lives and your sanctuaries for a short moment. Your voices will hopefully echo across many towns, and be heard by people who are also struggling with this decision.

I want to say that I still love the Methodist church despite this decision made at the General Conference. I feel lucky to be a member of a faith where people can have different opinions.

Writing this article wasn’t about how I feel about the decision, but about how the decision was affecting the community I live in. There is real pain here. I think it’s easy for so many people to dismiss this issue as something that doesn’t affect them. But once you know someone that feels less than because of this, it breaks your heart in half. I don’t know a lot of people in the LGBTQ community, especially older adults. But as I got to know Kimberly and Jen it struck me how insanely great parents they were. They love their kids, they love each other, they want to make people happy and do good for the world. They remind me of my parents or my grandparents. And after talking to them about some of the struggles they have endured both internally and externally, I cried in my car on the way home.

There is also real hope here. Madi Denton and many of the other pastors I spoke to are gifted with patience and understanding, and promoting honest and open discussion over something I know Christians struggle with every day. This story goes way beyond my article and is something I know many congregations are grappling with.

My hope is that Methodism can overcome this. I know the God that I believe in is one that ultimately believes in love, and that love is for everyone. This story is not to shame anyone or present the Christian faith in a negative light. The Methodist church does amazing things for this world, maybe just as a denomination it has a little more soul searching as to what Jesus and John Wesley would tell them to do.

This entire experience is a prime example of what makes me feel fulfilled. I genuinely connected with my sources and gave people a way to share their voices with the rest of the community, and that’s what journalism is all about at the end of the day.

To close this absurdly long blog post I want to include a quote that I read somewhere in the literal hundreds of tweets I read about this decision.

“I would rather be excluded for who I include than included for who I exclude.”

Read my story here. A special thank you to Jeanne Abbott and Brian Kratzer, as well as my hero Liv Paggiarino for spending hours helping me edit this story.

When being tired and overwhelmed becomes your normal state of being, that’s your body telling you to slow down.

I had been experiencing that for the past couple of weeks. Meetings and midterms and long-term stories (more on this later, very exciting and scary) were forming a small mountain in my planner, and I just didn’t know where I was going to fit it all in. I felt a little lump in my stomach forming as I planned out my days and definitely had a few stress cries.

Thank you to whoever plans Mizzou’s break schedule, because having a week off after an extremely intense school schedule was the greatest gift ever.

I went to Kiawah, South Carolina with my group of girl friends for a week and made this video (video? what? a new medium?), so watch it if you’d like. It is definitely a little cheesy but I had a ton of fun making it. I can’t wait to share my upcoming blog post about a long-term story I am working on that should be published soon, so stay tuned for that!

Everyone has someone they turn to when they’re in a tough spot. For me, that’s my dad.

My dad is nothing short of a hero and I am so fortunate to have a father figure that is my number one fan. Over the last twenty years he has also learned to be the best source of comfort to my restless and self-doubting soul. He always tells me the same thing when I believe I am miserably failing at my goals – “be a sponge.”

I am privileged enough to go to one of the best journalism schools in the world with thousands of talented students just as hungry for success as I am. While being surrounded by equally motivated peers is inspiring, it also puts a TON of pressure on you to be the best – all the time.

This statement obviously extends far beyond journalism and into just about every facet of life. But I think this constant standard of perfection can distract from the true purpose of college – to learn. A huge part of being a student or working your way through anything is making mistakes and learning from them. Absorbing those lessons and keeping them with you will make you a better photographer, writer, and human!

I lose sight of this all the time and just tend to get down on myself when I know I did a shoot that wasn’t my best, and my editors tell me they know I can do better. My habitually negative brain says “Why did you do that? Maybe you aren’t good enough to make it out there in the real world.”

Here’s a good example of this from Sunday. I was on shift at the Missourian (which is the hardest yet most amazing experience I have ever had so far), and I was having an off day. We have been experiencing some crazy winter weather up here in CoMo and I was “feature hunting”, aka exploring the city looking for good scenes to photograph. I saw the moments but the shots just weren’t as good as I had hoped, I needed to explore different angles, etc. My editors told me the shots were close, but not all the way there. I left for my final assignment, photographing a roller derby team in near by Hallsville, feeling discouraged.

When I showed up at the warehouse they practiced in, I was focused on working my angles and exploring that extra step to get the most visually interesting frame. I started out a little timid, but by the end I was having lively conversations with the members of the team and sprawling myself all over the floor to get that money shot. I came back with horribly dirty jeans and a really satisfied feeling – I had absorbed my failure from earlier shoots and turned it into something good. I was “sponge-ing”.

You will fail. I have failed so many times at so many things. But it will make you into a better shooter, better writer, better friend and better person. I know my dad is right when he says the best thing you can do is soak in everything happening around you, every lecture, every experience. The path that waits before you can only be navigated by trial and error, so let the error happen and try and appreciate it even when it hurts. Maybe we should listen to the successful people we look up to when they say failure is the first step to success.

WOAH. It has been a long time since I last blogged. But I am happy to say this year I will be back to some (semi) regularly scheduled programming.

The last semester has been, well, amazing and rough. I was taking challenging courses, getting used to living in my sorority house, and busy trying to figure my life out. So I told myself, “I don’t have time to write or focus on creativity. That comes second in my life, I am just too busy with more important things.”

Looking back on this I kind of want to slap myself. We live in a society that preaches self-care and I am a huge believer in that. But it’s not just about remembering to wash your face and eat your vegetables, it’s taking care of your soul as well. Being creative is a big part of me and I am going to try and prioritize caring about that part of me more. More photos, more blog posts, more adventures.

With all this being said, I will be shooting much more this semester since I will be on staff at the Columbia Missourian which I am PUMPED about. I am hoping that once I get back into my photo-mode I will be addicted and inspired again. I’ve definitely experienced “photographers block” these past few months, so I am looking forward to breaking out of that funk.

Life update = over. Now I would like to share a story I wrote in my news writing class that I am really proud of. Happy reading!

—————————————————————————————————————————————-

See and Be Seen: Representation in Columbia’s Film Community

Nathan Wright works tirelessly to turn his stories of personal turmoil into artistic triumphs.

Wright is a local African American film maker who is set to graduate from MU next week. Since receiving his first camera for Christmas during his junior year, he has fallen in love with making movies. He wants to make it big but needs the channel to get there.

Although recent cultural movements have put a spotlight on the inequalities in film present for women and people of color, there are still areas for improvement. A 2016 study by the University of Southern California found that only 28.3 percent of speaking characters across various media platforms were from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups. Columbia, Missouri is seeking to close this gap.

Pulling others up

Wright is encouraged by the amount of local and national attention representation is receiving. He is happy to see shows such as Atlanta created by Donald Glover, who have all black writers and black lead characters, breaking into new cultural territory.

“From a kid’s perspective growing up, you never see yourself in the main story line. Black people are always the supporting character,” Wright said. “It seeps into them, what they see is what they believe.”

Looking towards his future, he is pursuing a career in narrative film making. His goal as a producer and director is to provide a helping hand to others.

“Stories I tell will vary, but I want to pull people up to the top if I get there,” Wright said. “That’s the only way for people of color to get up there, is with connections.”

Although Columbia is just a stop on his trek to a bigger film scene, he appreciates the growing community of creatives here.

“It’s great and it’s underestimated. The support you get from such a tight knit community is great,” Wright said.

He has experienced success here, working at SXSW film festival in Austin through a local connection and receiving the grand prize in a visual art and design exhibition for one of his films.

“It was really validating to go through all that pain and receive that,” Wright said.

Over, under, and around

Stacy Woelfel, a documentary film professor and enthusiast, is encouraged by the growing representation in the films showcased at the local film festival True/False.

Woelfel teaches at the MU School of Journalism and is the director of the Johnathan B. Murray Center for Documentary Journalism. He is hooked on the storytelling ability of cinematic nonfiction and cultivates the same passion in his students. Outside of his work at MU, he screens films for True/False. He has seen a sharp uptick in film submissions by minorities and women in the last few years and believes representation in the arts is an essential factor in accurate storytelling.

In the classroom, Woelfel teaches his students to represent people accurately and to creatively tell true stories about themselves and others. Showing his students work by people with different levels of education and socioeconomic statuses is just one of the ways he lets all voices be heard.

“The white male has been the center of media, and documentary journalism has given people the ability to go over, under and around that,” Woelfel said. “True/False puts a lot of effort into making sure different channels are highlighted.”

Inclusion is for everyone

Ragtag Cinema in downtown Columbia works closely with True/False, the two of them together making up Ragtag Film Society. Ragtag aims to show films that inspire conversation and display new perspectives.

Barbie Banks is the managing film director of Ragtag Cinema. She believes representation is essential in the world of film and is dedicated to providing channels of dialogue on how film institutions can be more inclusive.

“Film creates empathy towards a larger issue you may never experience,” Banks said.

After working in film for years, Banks has a clear picture on what challenges exist for equal representation in film. One of these challenges is getting major film institutions who traditionally show mainstream movies by white men to support female filmmakers and filmmakers of color.

“Most people who go to the movies are women, but they don’t see themselves represented on screen… And men need to want to see women on film,” Banks said. “They don’t have that pull, we need bigger film industries to commit to the idea of representation.”

A seat at the table

Another challenge the film industry faces is showing films for different types of people while also being financially stable.

“We want to program films people will come to, but we also want to program new and innovative movies as well,” Banks said.

Banks has found that Ragtag’s donations spike when they showcase more diverse films, which helps balance the books if they don’t draw as large of an audience with a particular type of film.

Banks says the root of inclusion is the decisions being made behind the scenes. Ragtag picks the films they show with everyone’s opinion in mind.

“Make sure people are at the table. I always remember this quote, if you’re not invited to the table, pull up a chair,” Banks said.

New Territory

Donna Kozloskie has also taken notice of Columbia’s shift towards inclusion. She is the director of programming at Citizen Jane, an all-female film festival hosted at Stephens College every year. This past year they received submissions from 24 countries.

A New Jersey native, she feels privileged to have grown up in a diverse community. She was shocked to see that the diversity she loved and knew at home effectively disappeared once she began her career in the arts.

“They were basically invisible,” Kozloskie said.

She is determined to widen the lens in her role at Citizen Jane. Her main goal is to represent all types of women in all different genres.

Kozloskie is encouraged by streaming services such as Netflix that are telling more diverse stories and providing more opportunities for women to break into previously unexplored areas of film. She believes it’s a necessity to give women a chance in all film types from horror to drama and beyond.

“People need to be able to recognize themselves on screen and know what their opportunities are. It’s not just for rich white boys anymore,” Kozloskie said. “We want to represent as many genres as possible to these directors.”

Throughout this class we have had the opportunity to develop many skills in reporting through multimedia. I am most confident in the skills of photo editing, audio gathering, and conversing with subjects during interviews.

I have a lot of previous experience with photography, but am fairly new to journalistic photography. I developed a good sense of planning to get wide, medium, and tight shots and I was able to edit my photos for the five photo project and the real person photo assignment to where every photo had a solid storytelling composition and looked good with the rest of the work in the piece. My real person photo project is the one I am most proud of, because all of the colors flowed very well and they were all framed in a visually pleasing way.

During audio, I was apprehensive at first. The new equipment overwhelmed me and I was nervous about interviewing. But I was able to get clear audio and edit my interviews down into concise thoughts that all contributed to my Vidwest piece, and I was very proud of it. I do wish I had gathered more of scene setting nat sound and that my reporting had established a place, but I know now to do that in the future!

Finally, I grew in my abilities to interview people. At the beginning I felt like my interviews were very clinical, a get what I want and get out type of situation. But this class taught me to really listen to and engage with my subjects, and I made many connections with the people I met and it inspired me to hear their stories. I also could formulate new questions based off of their answers,. which was really useful in composing a good story that seemed connected and seamless.

Af far as skills I would like to improve on, I would love to be able to feel more comfortable with the mobile video kit. I liked my TV style video piece but I did feel uncomfortable getting so close for tight shots, and I feel like that element would have added to the piece. I also want to improve on finding unique stories. I felt like I only covered events that were occurring around town, which are still newsworthy, but I wish I had found an interesting subject to do a profile piece on. I love those kind of stories and want to be able to execute one myself one day. I also want to improve on my caption skills in my photos. On my real person assignment I felt like my captions were very surface level and I had some AP errors. I feel like sometimes I just put the bare minimum of information for captions, the who what when where. But if I could work on gathering fun facts or compelling quotes from the subject that would really enhance my photos.

For this assignment, I analyzed a digital news video by NowThis over the water crisis in Cape Town, South Africa. This video used well beyond four sources to build the story, most notably aerial photographic data from NASA, information directly from the government of Cape Town over rainfall levels, data analyzed by academic scholars from the University of Cape Town, and demographic data from both the national government of South Africa and the local government of Cape Town. Additionally, they used other articles published by the New York Times and BBC.

The technical data provided by NASA and the rainfall levels provided by officials at the Cape Town Airport provided excellent ways to help the audience visualize how drastic the change in water levels has been over the last few years. This emphasizes how dire the situation is in Cape Town and how quickly time is running out for the government and its citizens to make a plan to provide enough water for people to drink and use for showering.

But, this water crisis is about much more than the forces of mother nature. The use of articles from other news publications and the political information provided by the national government of South Africa adds a deeper level of understanding of the politics behind providing relief and funding for Cape Town and its governing party. The potential implications and shifts in political power that could result in acknowledgement of the crisis play a huge role in how the situation is being handled.

This video used very reliable sources in all facets, choosing reliable and resourceful news publications to draw facts from. The combination of all of these sources paints a complete picture of the different factors playing into the scarcity of water in Cape Town in just a concise six minutes and thirty seconds, making the information both interesting and impactful. It was an extremely successful piece that kept the audience engaged while learning about such a dire situation.

The list of summer music and film festivals is nearly endless, but what about celebrations of music videos? Creatives are pushing to commend this shorter artistic medium, and it’s not in Hollywood or the Big Apple, but right here in Columbia, Missouri. 21-50’s Liz Goodwin reports on the first festival of its kind, Vidwest, and how this showcase is bringing artists together.

Vidwest.wav

Filmmakers and musicians around the world have numerous opportunities to showcase their work, but now music videos are getting their shot. A new festival celebrating the arts debuted this weekend here in Columbia, with several stores and local shops hosting film screenings and live musical performances.

Fade in barambi.wav

Galarza_1.wav11

Gabby Galarza works with other executives to host this unique event for the local community to come together and appreciate pieces from around the country. A Columbia native, she sees something special in a smaller creative community.

Galarza_2.wav15

Fade in Vidwestconferenceambi.wav

Beyond viewing original works, this festival represents something greater for mid-Missouri. Melissa Lion Lewis, founder and director of Vidwest, hopes the event will help artists forge new connections.

Lewis_1.wav 12

The benefits of a thriving artistic community are enormous. Aside from new musical pieces for the locals to enjoy, it promotes cultural awareness and recognition of other people’s lived experiences. Writer and director Juston Gaddis sees these effects firsthand.

Gaddis_1.wav16

Creators and creatives alikenow have a new channel to appreciate and collaborate on works in Columbia, with many more events just like it soon to come.

The University of Missouri holds a lot of options for people seeking higher education. Students flock from all over the world to pursue one of the over three-hundred majors the institution offers. For Clare Foley, Mizzou’s impressive curriculum and positive atmosphere was enough to hook her in right away.

Clare_Mizzou_1.wav (8)

“Mizzou kind of spoke to me because when I came and toured it’s such a beautiful campus, and the people here are so nice, so it already felt like home to me the minute I walked on.”

Foley traveled over five-hundred miles, all the way from Texas, to be a Mizzou Tiger. She plans to earn her stripes in Missouri’s Journalism program, world famous for its “Missouri Method” of incorporating real-world experience right into their lesson plans.

Clare_Jschool.wav (16)

“I’ve found just through the couple of classes I’ve had to take through the journalism school that they’re very in depth and very thorough, so I leave a class with a whole head of information I never knew before. And it definitely feels like I’m getting my money’s worth every time I sit down in a classroom.”

And she isn’t the only one. The journalism school pulls thousands of out-of-state students to Columbia, Missouri every year, each student studying, working, and striving to be the cream of the journalistic crop. In a world of increasing access to information, Mizzou is making sure that there will be an army of reporters, columnists, and documentary filmmakers to keep us all up to date.

Hundreds of families headed to the Columbia Regional Airport on Sunday, May 27, 2018 to watch military aircraft and parachuting teams take to the skies. Saturday and Sunday’s airshow and parade marked Salute to Veterans Corporation’s thirtieth year of hosting events to praise and thank veterans, living and dead, for their service and sacrifice. “We are so honored and excited to host this event” said Jessica Houston, Media Coordinator for Salute to Veterans.

This years show featured the United States Air Force A-10 II Thunderbolt aerial demonstration team for the first time since 2010. “It’s a full time job for up to two years” said Cody Wilton, a pilot of an A-10. “We do about 20 shows a season, which usually starts in mid-February.” Smiles crossed the faces of both young and old as planes roared down the runway every thirty minutes or so. Additionally, the pilots shared the skies with the United States Army Special Operation Command parachute demonstration team, Black Daggers. This USAOC group has members from several Special Operation Forces including the 528th Sustainment Brigade, the 75th Ranger Regiment, and U.S. Army Special Operations Aviation Command. “We practice every week, we have to make sure our landings are exact and scaled properly..” said Sargent First Class Nicholas Betty. Betty is a Special Forces Weapons Sargent and is in the last two years of his service. “This is sort of my early-retirement gig. It’s a lot of fun and the guys are great.”

Twelve honored guests were celebrated this year, a group made of both active and retired servicemen. Families applauded and cheered for all members of service and their families, passing by and saying “Thank you for your service” as the sun shone down on military grade aircraft on display and the various information tents for branches of the armed forces. As Memorial Day approaches, members of the local community will hold veterans in high regard and have immense gratitude for all those who have served.

Russell and Susanne M., right, find some shade under a 290 aircraft while observing the pilots take off on Sunday May 27, 2018. Hundreds of people brought out their lawn chairs and blankets to mark their territory where they joyfully watched the demonstration teams take to the air.“My dad served in World War II,” said Mary Potzmann as she served snacks and drinks to the airshow crowd on Sunday May 27, 2018. “We grew up in Iran after the war ended.. he was nearly an English teacher for Iranian Soldiers, even though he didn’t talk much in his private life.” Potzmann and her husband have attended the airshow every Memorial Day weekend for 19 years.Pilot Cody Wilton, left, poses in front of his A-10 aircraft on Sunday May 27, 2018. “I used to go to airshows as a kid all the time,” said Wilton. “My parents served in the Navy, so I went in a different direction.” Wilton took to the air at 1:20PM on Sunday.Cadet Hope Adamson, right, 16, works the information booth with fellow cadets for Civil Air Patrol. “I joined when I was 14,” said Adamson. “I want to go into the ROTC program at Texas A&M when I go to college.. I am glad my brother recommended this program to me, it’s a great way to see if military life is a good fit for you.” The patrol hosts weekly meetings for members, ages 12 to 19, to develop leadership skills and test-fly potential careers.Black Dagger parachute team member Steve Travers kicks off the Salute to Veteran’s airshow on Sunday May 27, 2018. He flew through the sky with the stars and stripes of the American flag billowing in his wake as planes circled the airspace above him.

Self-Critique

I am extremely pleased with my work on this project. I was pleasantly surprised at the responsiveness of Jessica Houston, the media coordinator for the show. She was able to set me up with an interview of Cody Wilton, and everyone else I talked to was happy to converse with me over their experience and connection the the various service branches of the United States.

The lighting was extremely challenging as I was there from about ten to twelve, right in the heat of direct sunlight. However, I think I made the best of the situation by using some shaded areas. I also wish I had gotten some tighter detail shots. I am happy with my wide scene setters and portraits, but I feel as though a detail would have added to my overall story composition.

Additionally, the crowds of people were somewhat challenging. I love my portrait of Wilton but the bright colors of the people observing the plane are distracting to me. I am unsure as to how I could have prevented this, but I tried to make do with the situation.

A short break from my journalism assignments, I wanted to take the time to post some shots and thoughts reflecting on a lovely evening with lovely people I had this week.

I am testing the waters of adulthood and independence, working, taking classes, and living in an apartment with some of my best friends. It’s strange not seeing my family every day, but I am definitely loving being on my own. I can’t even describe what it is like to finally have my own kitchen again, for my love affair with food is strong, and we have already gone through about a carton and a half of eggs in a week but who is surprised?

This summer is the summer of us, which means living in full force and making the most of every experience accessible to us. I am focusing on health, my future career, and spending intentional time with the people I care about. This is something I have been thinking a lot about, being intentional. I feel like so often our time is spent with the people we love in a half hearted way, and our heads are often in other spaces. I have made it a goal of mine to only focus on the person in front of me when I am with them.

I spent some intentional time yesterday with this awesome group of women, just eating and talking and being both amused and disgusted by the amount of bugs that wanted to take a bite out of our pasta salad and chocolate almonds. Sometimes all it takes is a little fresh air and good food to make a good memory.

As May comes to a close, I am excited to see what the coming months hold for my friends and I, and am increasingly thankful I have these people in my life.

For this assignment, I analyzed the article “From Sea to Sand” by Peter Gwin and photographed by Anastasia Taylor-Lind, published in National Geographic.

This article was extremely successful in using the multimedia elements of text, photo packages, and video in immersing the reader into the story. The first person narrative the author uses as well as his own personal antidotes peaks the viewers curiosity and places his own fascination into the imagination of the audience. The historical context in the article also clarifies the importance of Arabian horses on a global scale, and shows what sacred meaning they have to middle-eastern culture.

The photo packages in the story are simply exquisite. The technical elements of the photographs are extremely strong from quality of light to contrast, and beyond their visual excellence the subject matter adds details to the story. The verbal descriptions of the horses as well as their riders are elevated by visual accompaniment the pictures provide. Personalities of dedicated stable owners are given a face, and the viewer can see firsthand the engorged muscles that allow magical Arabian horses to fly over the desert sands like magic carpets.

Finally, the short videos in the piece puts the reader in the saddle, right there with the journalists and the photographers. The horses kicking the dust in the wind and the scenic views of the small villages add yet another level to the placement of the audience in the middle of the experience. However, I would say that this element is the least successful out of all the multimedia facets. I would have changed it by adding sound to the videos, some slight ambient noise or recordings of the riders talking and chewing tobacco would have added another level to the story. All things considered, it is still a successful element, but could have been heightened with audio.

Overall, this was a very strong piece. I am personally very intrigued with this part of the world and would love to travel there myself one day, but reading this made me feel as though, just for a moment, I was sipping coffee overlooking an Arabian valley rather than at my kitchen counter on a rainy day in Columbia, Missouri.

Over the next few weeks, I am taking a multimedia journalism course here at Mizzou. I am already loving it and will be posting several assignments on my blog for my instructors and peers to see. Feel free to read along and leave some comments along the way. I am very excited for this opportunity to learn and grow!

Real Person Photo – J2150

Sam Mitten, 21, waits out the end of his shift at Broadway Diner Saturday, May 19, 2018. “I just passed my one year anniversary of working here,” Mitten said. “This is my first week on the day shift, I usually work from 10pm to 6am. One time a very drunk woman proposed to me, she tried to slip a ring on my finger and everything.. I had to decline of course.”Adelyn Swift (cq), 7, wanders around Lucky’s Market as her mother does her weekly grocery shopping Saturday, May 19, 2018. She filled her cart with vegetables, cheeses, and fruits as her mom took the majority of the haul.Jeremy Santiago, 21, serves ice cream during an early evening rush at Andy’s Frozen Custard Saturday, May 19, 2018. “I always try and serve with a smile.” He handled the crowd of about twenty people with grace and ease, cranking out concretes with gratitude and a laugh.